Pokeshipping Week 2017
by nyislandersgirl
Summary: A collection of short stories in celebration of Pokeshipping Week 2017. Join Ash and Misty in seven different tales that highlight the ups, downs, and in-betweens of their relationship.
1. Fishing

**Hey everyone! Welcome to my contribution to Pokeshipping Week 2017! This is one of my favorite weeks of the whole year because I love sharing my work surrounding this fantastic -ship, as well as looking at everyone else's work!**

 **This year, 7 different themes were chosen, and if we wanted, we could replace just one theme with one of our choosing. I have decided to change one of the themes, but I'm going to leave which one as a surprise for now!**

 **The first theme was Fishing, so obviously (as the title clearly shows) I decided to go with that one!**

 **As a reminder, I do not own any of these characters or anything else related to the Pokémon anime and franchise. The only thing that's mine here is the storyline.**

* * *

 **Fishing**

 _Really, is there anything better in the world than fishing?_

Misty smiled to herself as the thought ran through her head. What she was experiencing was nothing short of sheer bliss: a warm, sunny spot by the lake with a light breeze blowing through, completely silent with the exception of a few chirping bird Pokémon from the nearby trees.

Reaching into her red drawstring bag, Misty pulled out a portable fishing rod and unfolded it to its full size. Of course, carrying around a full-size fishing rod when you were travelling from city to city was not just impractical, it was basically impossible. Fortunately for Misty, a collapsible rod worked just as well for her as any of her good rods back home.

Naturally, it was because she was just so good at fishing.

The next thing she had to do was attach her lure to the end of the rod, and pulling out the small figure brought a different smile to Misty's face: one of pride. She had crafted her "Mini Misty" lure by hand, spending many painstaking hours on it to ensure that it would properly capture her beauty. After all, a lure with _that_ much loveliness would be simply irresistible to water types!

Once the lure was all set up, Misty held the rod with just the right amount of pressure and gave it a small toss forward, casting her line into the still, clear blue water before her. Mini Misty bobbed for a moment before sinking beneath the surface, and with that, Misty was fully in fishing mode. She let out a soft, content sigh and closed her eyes, waiting for the first tug at her line to bring her back down to Earth.

"Hey, there you are!"

Unfortunately for her, that plan was dashed rather quickly.

Misty's eyes snapped open into a sharp glare, which she immediately directed over her shoulder. Upon seeing who had disrupted her peace and quiet, Misty was anything but surprised, and the expression on her face changed a degree in order to reflect that.

"Ash," Misty hissed. "What are you doing here? I _told_ you and Brock I'd be back in a little while!"

"Yeah, but I got bored," Ash replied effortlessly, shrugging his shoulders. It was that motion that made Misty realize Pikachu was not perched in his usual spot.

"Where's Pikachu?" Misty asked, temporarily forgetting her anger towards the boy.

"Oh, he wanted to stay with Brock. He was still finishing his lunch," Ash answered, starting to move closer to Misty. "What're _you_ doing out here?"

Just like that, the irritation returned, although she tried to keep her voice level. "What does it _look_ like I'm doing?"

"Um…sitting by the lake?" Ash lamely suggested.

Misty narrowed her eyes and nodded her head towards the fishing pole in her hands. "I'm fishing, Ash."

The boy's face lit up. "Fishing? That sounds like so much fun!"

"Yeah right," Misty scoffed. "Every time you fish, you complain about how boring it is!"

"Only sometimes," Ash grumbled, his exuberance twisting into a begrudged pout. "Besides, _anything_ is more exciting than just sitting around the campsite while Brock talks about Nurse Joy non-stop."

Misty giggled, covering just half of her mouth with a hand. "The last one made quite an impression on him, huh?"

"Yeah, and the one before that," Ash muttered.

" _And_ the one before that," Misty added, closing her eyes as she tilted her head back. It was out of amusement, but the sun hitting her face certainly relaxed her. In that single, solitary moment, it was like all the peace she had felt before had returned.

"So…can I fish with you?"

And just like that, it was gone all over again.

Misty opened her eyes and tilted her head down, finding that Ash had sat down beside her. His brown eyes were pleading, and they seemed genuine. Then again, nothing about Ash really ever seemed fake. He was about the most sincere person Misty had ever met.

"Fine," Misty groaned, earning a victorious fist pump from the boy next to her. "But you _can't_ bug me! I do this for fun, and relaxation. So I know it's hard for you, but could you just try and keep your mouth shut for a little while?"

Most people would be put off by such a comment, but Ash expected nothing less from Misty. In response, he lightly shrugged his shoulders and quipped, "You should know. It's just as hard for you, right?"

Misty scowled, but chose not to retaliate. Ash knew that when _that_ happened, it was because she couldn't come up with anything better to fire back with. He liked to take those small victories and roll with them.

He was soon being handed a portable fishing rod identical to Misty's own; it was a spare that she kept in her bag alongside the original.

"Don't break it," Misty warned him, her tone more serious than before.

"Come on, Mist," Ash whined, taking the rod. "I know I can be kinda clumsy, but I'm not an obliterator!"

"Big word for you," Misty complimented. Now it was Ash's turn to scowl. Misty smirked and handed Ash a lure; a regular one, far less detailed than her own Mini Misty. "Just be careful, okay? It's not exactly easy to find these things."

"A fishing rod?" Ash questioned, taking the lure and examining both tools in his hands.

"A _portable_ fishing rod," Misty stressed. She stopped to think for a second before adding, "A _good_ portable fishing rod. Most of them are junk."

"And these are good, huh?" Ash asked, looking from his rod over to Misty's after attaching his lure to the end of the line.

"The best," Misty proudly confirmed.

Ash smirked. "We'll just see about that!" And with that, he cast his line into the lake. Her competitive streak flaring, Misty looked right ahead and re-cast her own line, watching as the two lures bobbed beneath the water, right next to each other.

 **XXX**

It took Ash less than ten minutes to become painfully bored.

He turned his head towards Misty, who, unlike him, looked like she was in heaven. Neither of them had caught a single thing yet, and Ash was starting to think that maybe the lake didn't actually have any Pokémon in it. Then again, Misty knew a lot about fishing, so it wouldn't make sense for her to waste her time at a spot that she knew had nothing to catch.

"Mist?" Ash prodded.

She ignored him. Ash sighed and tilted his head.

"Misty?"

Still ignoring him.

"MISTY!"

The redhead growled and snapped her head around. "What did I say about not bugging me?!"

"Are you _sure_ there are Pokémon in this lake?" Ash questioned, ignoring her own inquiry.

"Of course I'm sure," Misty grumbled, turning away from him.

"How?"

"Because I read it in my fishing guide that's literally never failed me before in my entire life," Misty growled.

"Did it say what _kind_ of Pokémon?" Ash pressed.

"Water types," Misty deadpanned.

"You know that's not what I meant!" Ash shot back. "I was talking about, like…Dewgong, or Seaking, or, oh! What about Gyarados?!"

Misty's eye twitched. "G-Gyarados?"

"Yeah, how cool would it be to find one of those?" Ash marveled, his excitement overflowing.

"Not cool at all," Misty muttered under her breath. Her hands suddenly jerked forward, catching both her and Ash's attention. "Hey, I think I got something!"

"Maybe a Gyarados?" Ash breathed, leaning forward on his knees.

"Would you quit it with the Gyarados?!" Misty shouted, tugging the rod backwards while simultaneously attempting to reel in her line. The handle was fighting against her, however, and Misty was finding it pretty difficult to move. "Ugh, it won't budge!"

Ash blinked and inched closer to Misty. "What'dya mean?"

"The reel," Misty grunted, sharply tugging at the handle again to try and spin it. "It's stuck!"

Whatever was at the end of her line yanked again, this time dragging Misty forward. Ash gasped and jumped up, wrapping his arms around Misty's waist without a second thought.

"Wh-what are you doing?!" Misty yelped. If the back of her head hadn't been facing Ash, he would've seen that her face was tinted bright red.

"Trying to help you!" Ash grunted as he dug his feet into the ground in an effort to keep himself steady. "You want to reel that thing in, right?"

Misty let out a shuttered breath before smirking and nodding her head. _That_ Ash could see, and his own smile returned upon the simple action.

"Try pulling back again!" Ash instructed.

Misty hummed affirmatively and dragged her arms back, guiding the rod over her shoulder. She gave a small peek back, making sure she wasn't about to hit Ash in the head with it. Unfortunately, that quick glance loosened her stance, and she started tumbling towards the lake once again. This time, however, Ash was holding her, and she stopped short.

"Careful!" Ash warned her. It wasn't said angrily or even in a chastising manner, however. In fact, he said it in such a way that Misty was almost convinced he _cared_ about her.

"Right," Misty breathed. She set her body rigid, tightening her grip on the rod and once again pulling it back, her hand cranking hard on the reel's handle. The tension in the reel started to lessen, and it suddenly became much easier for Misty to turn the handle. She went as quickly as she possibly could, not wanting to lose the momentum that had built up.

Before she could process it, her line emerged from the water, the sudden loss of the weight pulling her forward instead sending her toppling backwards. She collided with Ash, both of them falling to the ground. They both lay there stunned for a short moment before Misty popped back up, her eyes set wide.

"My rod!" She gasped.

She got to her feet and scurried over to it. Ash sat up and rubbed the side of his head, but quickly recovered when he remembered just why exactly he and Misty had hit the ground in the first place.

"What Pokémon was it?" Ash cried, scrambling to get to her. She was leaning over the rod, standing completely still and not responding to his question. "Was it a Gyarados like I thought?"

"Um, no…" Misty squeaked.

"Oh," Ash murmured, only a little disappointed. "What Pokémon then?"

"It…isn't a Pokémon."

Ash was about to ask what she meant by that, but had the question answered for him when she stood back up holding an old, deteriorating boot in her hands.

"A shoe?" Ash deadpanned. "All that struggling…over a shoe?"

"Technically it's a _boot_ , not _just_ a shoe, but yeah," Misty coolly replied.

Ash blinked and tilted his head. "How'd a boot put up like a fight like that?"

"I don't know," Misty grumbled, a distinct whine intermixed.

"Do you catch a lot of junk like that?" Ash questioned, pointing at the boot.

"No!" Misty stormed, quickly becoming reanimated as her face lit up red. "A talented fisher like me never catches anything worthless like this!"

"…but you just did…" Ash plainly stated.

Misty loudly growled and tossed the worn out boot over her shoulder. "Whatever, it was just a fluke. You saw nothing."

Ash looked confused, but suddenly, it all seemed to click for him. His lips bent into a sly smile, one which Misty didn't like the look of at all. It wasn't anything like his normal, genuine smile.

"What?" Misty grumbled, folding her arms.

"So…you wouldn't want me to go back to Brock and tell him how you fished an old boot out of the lake?" Ash asked theoretically.

Misty held her breath before rushing out, "No, I wouldn't."

Ash's wicked grin widened, and before Misty could stop him, he bolted forward and grabbed the boot off the ground, running a few more strides before spinning around and holding the boot above his head.

"Try and stop me!" He teased.

Misty blinked before deeply narrowing her eyes, grabbing her bag and the two portable fishing rods. "You'd better not let me catch up to you, Ash Ketchum! Not unless you want one of these rods making contact with your skull!"

The threat made Ash nervous, but he'd never let Misty know that. So with a cheeky smile and bellowing laugh, Ash whipped back around and started to run as fast as he could, tightly gripping the boot as he hurried to get back to Brock as quickly as possible with only one thought running through his head.

 _Really, is there anything better in the world than driving Misty crazy?_


	2. Jealousy

**Moving onto day 2 of Pokeshipping Week, and the theme is "jealousy"! This is always a fun theme when it comes to Ash and Misty. So many possibilities!**

* * *

 **Jealousy**

Everybody who was close to Ash knew he was a happy, easygoing guy. He didn't take himself too seriously (or anything else, really, unless it was a Pokémon battle or _training_ for a Pokémon battle) and he liked to joke around. He thought pranks were funny, even now as a young adult. Ash was always helping out others and made friends with just about everyone he came across.

That's why it was so surprising that Ash Ketchum, of all people, had a pretty intense jealousy streak.

It wasn't something people saw very often, which, when compounded with his personality, made it that much more astonishing. In fact, Ash really only got insanely jealous over _one_ thing.

Or, rather, one _person_.

One girl.

One Cerulean City gym leader.

One _Misty_.

It had taken Ash a while to realize Misty liked him, and that he liked her too. But even before he'd come to that conclusion, he'd had a habit of getting jealous when Misty would talk fondly of other guys, or get a little too close to them. Ash never recognized it as jealousy. But the people around him did. And it was intriguing to them.

 **XXX**

Brock was the first person to notice that Ash had that habit. It was several years before, when they were in O-Hina Town for the Princess Festival. The prize for winning the contest was a set of Pokémon Princess Dolls and a picture with the famous actor Fiorello Cappuccino. Misty had only been interested in the doll set, but she hadn't been able to say anything about that before Ash suddenly became huffy and sneered:

" _You must really want that picture with Fiorello."_

Misty hadn't been affected at all by the comment, and simply responded that she only cared about the dolls. After that, Ash dropped the subject…and the attitude. Brock, however, was not about to let it go so easily.

As the two boys sat on the sidelines of a battlefield, watching Misty train with _their_ Pokémon for the Princess Festival, Brock decided to try his luck and inquire about the prior incident.

"Hey Ash," Brock prodded, glancing over at the younger male. Ash looked towards him to show he was listening. "What was up with you before?"

Ash blinked. "What do you mean?"

"Well, you seemed a little…upset over the idea of Misty wanting to take a picture with that actor," Brock explained.

"Oh, that," Ash scoffed. "It was nothing! I just think it's kinda silly to make such a big deal over famous people."

"Except Misty didn't care about him," Brock continued, arching an eyebrow. "You were annoyed before she even said that."

"I wasn't annoyed," Ash calmly argued, knitting his brows.

"Could've fooled me," Brock mumbled, folding his arms across his chest. He knew he wasn't going to get anything out of this conversation, so he decided to just drop it.

But now _Ash_ was confused, and _he_ wanted answers. He was not going to drop the topic so easily. "Why'd you think I was annoyed?"

"Because you sounded annoyed," Brock answered plainly. "I just kind of thought…never mind."

"Wait, what'd you think?" Ash pressed.

Brock sucked in a breath before admitting, "I thought you might be jealous."

"Jealous?" Ash repeated. "Why would I be jealous?"

Brock resisted the urge to smack his own face. Ash was too dense for his own good. "Because Misty was showing feelings towards another guy. Which, actually, she wasn't even doing. You just _assumed_ that's what she was doing."

Ash looked even more confused than before, which Brock hadn't thought was possible. "I don't care what Misty does. I mean, I do. But that's because she's my friend! I wouldn't tell her what to do or get upset over what she chooses to do, though. That'd be weird!"

"Oh, okay," Brock breathed, lulling Ash into a sense of false security. "So if Misty was interested in a guy, you wouldn't mind?"

Ash pulled back. He suddenly didn't seem so sure of himself. "…no, I wouldn't."

"Really?" Brock pressed.

"Yeah," Ash grumbled, looking back towards Misty just as she was commanding Pikachu to use thunderbolt. "Really."

Brock scoffed, quietly so Ash couldn't hear it, and glanced in the same direction as him.

 _That's a lie if I ever heard one._

 **XXX**

Eight years later, Ash and Brock found themselves in a very similar position. Only this time, Ash was _definitely_ jealous.

Misty was standing just a few feet away, talking and laughing with some random guy who neither Brock nor Ash had ever seen before. Brock didn't think the guy was anything special, but Ash had been rambling on and on about it, and Brock had no choice but to listen and try to reassure his best friend that it was no big deal.

"I mean, who does that guy think he is?" Ash stressed, folding his arms.

"Don't know," Brock muttered, his elbow resting on his knee and his head propped up in his hand.

"Everyone knows Misty has a boyfriend, and it's _me!_ " Ash carried on, unfurling his arms so he could throw them around. "Don't you think it's kind of rude for all these random guys to just start flirting with her?"

"Well, Misty doesn't seem to mind it," Brock noted.

"Pi-ka," Pikachu agreed, nodding his head. He was sitting between the two men, watching the scene as well.

"Because she knows it drives me crazy!" Ash exclaimed.

"That's kind of funny, I can't lie to you," Brock snickered.

"Brock!" Ash whined.

"What? It's just so Misty!" Brock chuckled.

Misty and the stranger were soon bidding farewell, which culminated in a hug. Ash's face turned bright red, and he quickly whipped around so the other guy wouldn't see it as he left. As soon as Ash heard the gym's automatic doors close, he glanced back up, locking eyes with a contended Misty. As soon as she saw Ash's face, however, she became confused.

"What's wrong?" Misty asked innocently.

Ash was floored by the question. "What's wrong?! Misty, a guy was flirting with you right in front of me!"

"What?" Misty deadpanned.

"You heard me," Ash grumbled.

"He wasn't flirting with me!" Misty refuted with a laugh.

"Oh yeah?" Ash bit. "Then what was with all that smiling and laughing? And that hug?!"

"Ash, chill out," Misty sighed, growing bored of their little back-and-forth. "He was just a gym challenger, that's all."

"Seemed a little too friendly for _just_ a gym challenger," Ash grumbled.

"Okay, fine, he's a little more than _just_ a gym challenger," Misty admitted, bringing horror to Ash's face. "His name is Dean, and he's actually from Cerulean City. I've known him since he was just a little kid. He finally came here to challenge me for a gym battle. So that's why it looked so friendly; because he's a _friend_."

"Oh…" Ash murmured, suddenly feeling pretty embarrassed. This was obvious to both Brock and Misty, who exchanged knowing glances.

"Told you it was no big deal," Brock commented, sitting up straight.

Ash narrowed his eyes at the older male. "You never told me that."

"I didn't?" Brock questioned, scratching his chin. "Huh, guess I just said it in my head repeatedly."

"Don't worry about it, Brock," Misty sighed. "Ash just needs to learn to not be so jealous, that's all."

Ash let out a short laugh, unnerving his girlfriend. "Is that a joke? You're just as bad as me, if not worse!"

Misty's mouth dropped open. "I am not!"

"Yes you are!" Ash argued. "Every time a girl who's just a fan of mine comes up to me you start freaking out!"

"Yeah, because they always put their hands all over you without fail!" Misty cried. "How am I supposed to react when a girl starts hanging off your arm like her life depends on it?"

"Okay, so me being upset when another guy hugs you is any different?" Ash challenged.

"It is when the other guy is someone I actually know!" Misty bit. "And not for nothing, but there's a _huge_ difference between a friendly hug and an over-the-top caress of a body part."

Brock and Pikachu simultaneously sighed as the couple carried on with their argument. Scooping up the mouse, Brock got to his feet and muttered to the electric type, "Let's go somewhere a little quieter."

"Chu," Pikachu concurred.

"We'll be back in a little while," Brock informed the shouting couple over his shoulder as he started to walk away. He was almost positive they couldn't hear him, but he figured it was courteous to at least attempt to let them know. "Unless, you know, you two decide to make up the way you normally do. In which case we'll be back _much_ later."

"Pi," Pikachu growled lowly, disturbed by the thought.

Surprisingly, enough, Ash and Misty had managed to hear Brock's last comment, and that had been enough to cease the arguing. They were both now red in the face again, albeit for a much different reason.

"Do we really make up like that _that_ much?" Ash whispered. "And with Brock around?"

"…yeah," Misty begrudgingly admitted. "Unfortunately."

"Yikes," Ash muttered. "Maybe we _should_ try and get all this jealousy under control."

Misty tilted her head from side-to-side before scuffing the toe of her sneaker against the floor, folding her hands behind her back. "Or we could, you know, just… _make up_."

Ash appeared stunned for a moment before melting into a mischievous smile and reaching out to grab Misty by the waist and pulling her against him.

"You're right. That's a _way_ better idea."

* * *

 **For last year's Pokeshipping Week, I wrote a story where Ash and Misty are arguing, Brock steps away for a bit, and comes back to those two in a bit of a compromising position. So I thought it'd be fun to pay homage to that here one year later.**


	3. If Misty Had Chosen to Stay with Rudy

**This was an interesting theme to consider. Originally, this was the theme I was considering replacing. "Misty Meets Her Match" is one of my all time favorite episodes, but I just couldn't even imagine a scenario where Misty decides to stay with Rudy. Eventually, though, I came up with an idea which to me sort of felt like a loophole...so I decided to stick with the theme and write out that idea!**

* * *

 **If Misty Had Chosen to Stay With Rudy**

"Misty, would you stay with me and Mahri forever?"

Misty's breath caught at the question. She'd been dancing with Rudy, the Trovita Island gym leader, along with his sister and Pokémon, and certainly hadn't been expecting _that_ question.

Rudy seemed to be a nice enough guy. He had invited Misty to dinner and treated her to a very lovely, home cooked meal. He'd shown her how he trained his Pokémon for battle, particularly in different methods that a lot of other trainers wouldn't think of, like dancing.

But Rudy's invitation had just about knocked Misty off her feet.

It must've been obvious to Rudy, because he suddenly didn't seem quite as exuberant. Instead, he offered Misty a kind smile and offered, "You can make your decision after the match tomorrow."

Misty mentally smacked herself. The match! Rudy had a match with Ash tomorrow! She'd been so distracted by the whole evening that she completely forgot about it.

That only served to further confuse Misty.

The fact of the matter was she had feelings for Ash. She had for quite a while now, but she wasn't so sure that Ash would ever reciprocate those feelings. He wasn't the smartest guy when it came to romance, after all. And as much as Misty would've loved for Ash to realize her feelings, or even better, that he had them too, she wasn't so sure that would ever happen.

Was she just wasting her time hoping it would?

 **XXX**

Ash and Rudy's match was being viewed from a hot air balloon high above the action.

Misty, Tracey, and Mahri occupied the basket, watching on intently as the two trainers engaged in battle. The first match up was the battle of the electric types: Pikachu against Electabuzz. Pikachu had put in his best effort against Electabuzz, but was ultimately beaten by a powerful thunder punch, giving Rudy the first round.

As both trainers returned their Pokémon, Mahri glanced over at Misty and asked, "Misty, what did Rudy say to you last night?"

Misty hesitated for a moment before carefully replying, "Nothing important."

In reality, she hadn't stopped thinking about Rudy's proposal since he first made it. Misty hadn't even been able to _sleep_ because she had a million thoughts running through her head. She did think Rudy was a nice guy, sweet even. But she'd become so used to travelling around with Ash and Brock. And, of course, there were those pesky, unrelenting feelings for the younger of the two…

As the battle progressed, Misty was no longer watching closely. She realized time was running out to make her decision, and she was nowhere near close to having made up her mind.

"Starmie is unable to battle! Which means the winner of this match is Ash Ketchum from Pallet Town!"

Misty's eyes widened. Just like that, she was snapped back to reality. She looked down at Mahri, who seemed positively heartbroken that Rudy had lost the battle. It was obvious she really loved him, and that he was an excellent older brother. A family dynamic that Misty often felt was lacking when it came to her sisters.

In front of a magnificent sunset, Ash received his Spike Shell Badge from Rudy, overjoyed by his victory and completely unaware of the turmoil his closest female friend was in. Misty, meanwhile, who was still stewing in her own misery, was offered a beautiful bouquet of flowers from the Trovita Island gym leader. He had made the same gesture the day before.

"Misty, have you thought about my offer?" Rudy asked softly.

Misty frowned and looked around the young man. Ash was still hollering with excitement, celebrating his win along with Pikachu. Tracey was standing with them, showering congratulations and other compliments upon the duo. Mahri, on the other hand, stood nearby, still looking disappointed as she scuffed the toe of her shoe against the ground.

Suddenly, everything became startlingly clear.

Her lips bending up into a smile, Misty reached out with one arm, keeping the other wrapped around her Togepi, and accepted the flowers from a clearly intrigued Rudy.

"Yes," Misty replied, gently but confidently. "I would love to stay here with you."

Rudy's expression transformed into one of sheer happiness. Suddenly, he looked an awful lot like the boy celebrating just behind him.

"Really?!" Rudy breathed, causing Misty to nod her head. "That's so great! I'm really happy you decided to stay!"

"I just have to tell my friends," Misty murmured, inclining her head towards Ash and Tracey. "Would it be alright if I had a moment alone with them?"

"Of course," Rudy sighed happily. "Take as much time as you need!"

Misty felt her smile widen. She really wasn't used to a guy being so nice to her, and she couldn't lie: it felt really great. "Thanks."

She started to move towards Ash and Tracey, who were so engrossed in their own bubble they hadn't noticed her approaching. Even once she got close to them, they failed to greet her. Narrowing her eyes, Misty cleared her throat to gain their attention, which finally worked in her favor.

"Oh, hey, Mist!" Ash greeted. Misty felt her heart fall to her stomach the second he used that nickname. "Did you see my Spike Shell Badge? It's so cool!"

"It is," Misty quietly agreed. "Look, guys, there's something I need to tell you."

Ash and Tracey suddenly became a lot less jovial. They could both seemed to understand the serious tone of Misty's voice; even the typically dense Ash.

"What is it, Misty?" Tracey asked patiently.

"Last night, after I had dinner with Rudy, he asked me to stay here on Trovita Island with him and Mahri," Misty explained, deciding it was best to not drag it out too long. "I just told him that I've decided to do just that."

The boys both went wide eyed.

"What?" Tracey breathed.

"You mean you're not going to be travelling with us anymore?" Ash murmured, sounding like he'd just en electrocuted by Pikachu.

"Pi…" the aforementioned electric mouse whimpered sadly.

"You guys are two of my best friends," Misty bleated, her eyes beginning to water. "And I'll never forget all of our adventures together and how much you both mean to me. Brock too. I'm sure we're all see each other again one day."

Ash, however, was not about take this lying down. "Isn't this kind of sudden? I mean, we've been travelling together for a really long time. And now you're just gonna ditch us?!"

Misty looked considerably hurt by the comment. "I'm not ditching you guys. I just-"

"You're just hanging back with the first guy who hits on you," Ash bluntly interrupted.

"Ash…" Tracey warned.

Misty was so angry that she hadn't even processed the fact that Ash seemed to recognize Rudy was interested in her. "You make it sound like I'm some kind of desperate loser!"

"I would never think of you like that," Ash grumbled, although his voice was softening. "I just don't understand why you made this decision. Do you think Rudy is a better friend than me or Tracey?"

"Of course not, I already said you're both two of my best friends," Misty reiterated. "Rudy's just been very kind to me, and…you're right. I'm not used to a guy treating me that way. And I really like it."

Ash frowned. "Does that mean we don't treat you well?"

"No, that's not it at all," Misty refuted, shaking her head. "I meant treating me like…like…"

"Like a girlfriend," Tracey concluded when Misty failed to find the words. In response, she just let out a long breath and slowly nodded her head.

Tracey and Ash exchanged looks. While the former was starting to look rather empathetic, the latter was still confused.

"You think it's that important to have a boyfriend?" Ash asked. He wasn't being facetious this time; he genuinely wanted to know.

"Not like life or death," Misty refuted. "But it definitely seems nice. And if this is something that's meant to be, I don't want to let it pass me by and never know."

"But how do you know you're not meant to be with someone else?" Ash prodded. "Why does it have to be Rudy? I know he's being nice to you and stuff, and you're saying that he likes you, but what if there are other guys out there who like you too?"

"Like who?" Misty laughed shortly. She was growing tired of going back and forth with the young trainer.

"I dunno," Ash murmured, shrugging his shoulders. "Maybe somebody like…me."

Both Tracey and Misty's eyes widened. Pikachu squeaked and whipped his gaze between his trainer and Misty, unsure whether he had to shock the boy back to his senses.

"Wh-what?" Misty stammered, barely able to get even that word out.

"I…I've been thinking a lot about this lately, and I think I really like you, Misty," Ash admitted, his voice becoming stronger and more confident. "More like a girlfriend than just a friend."

Misty let out a shuttered breath before a massive smile appeared on her face. She broke out into a sprint, running straight towards Ash. She could see only him…it was as if the rest of the world around them had just disappeared. He held his arms out towards her as well, and right before Misty was able to meet his waiting embrace, a bright white light filled her vision and all but blinded her.

 **XXX**

She awoke with a start, jumping up from the bed as her eyes snapped open.

Misty allowed her eyes to adjust to the darkness before looking around the room. Ash and Tracey were both asleep on the other side of the room. Togepi was also fast asleep, but on Misty's pillow. The red head sighed, just grateful at this point that her rude awakening hadn't disturbed anyone else. She pulled her knees in towards her chest, wrapping her arms around them as she stared at the floor.

 _What am I doing? I can't possibly consider staying here with Rudy, can I? Sure, he's a nice guy, but my friends…but Ash…_

Misty lifted her gaze back towards Ash. His raven hair was spread in every direction, one arm bent above his head with the other hanging over the edge of the bed. She smiled to herself and slowly shook her head.

 _I'm sorry, Rudy. But Ash is the one that I want. And I'll follow him to the ends of the Earth until I have the courage to tell him how I feel._


	4. Lost Together

**Welcome to day 4: Lost Together! This is a theme that, as soon as I saw it, was intrigued by. The first thing I thought of was being lost together in the literal sense, but I didn't quite feel like writing that. Then, I started to think of what it meant to be lost in other ways that maybe weren't quite as literal. I came up with something that I feel is pretty relatable, and was personally very touching for me to delve into and put into words.**

* * *

 **Lost Together**

It wasn't easy when you expected to be at a specific place at a specific time in your life, and you just weren't.

Misty knew that feeling all too well. She was usually pretty good at ignoring it, and pretending like she was okay with being patient and waiting for her time to come, but today, that feeling was gnawing away at her a little more than usual.

Okay…a _lot_ more than usual.

Misty clenched her teeth together as she glanced over her shoulder at the gym's pool. She couldn't help but to feel trapped in this building. She'd felt that way for a while. Misty had never _really_ had a problem with being a gym leader, but that wasn't what she wanted to do for the rest of her life either. Misty had always had her heart set on becoming a master of water type Pokémon, and to her, that meant becoming a member of the Elite Four.

But she wasn't there yet. And no matter how hard she worked, Misty felt like it was still unattainable.

 _Maybe I've just been spending too much time inside today,_ Misty thought to herself, shaking her head as she walked out of the battle area. _That's never good for me; the lack of fresh air makes me think too much._

The red head raised her eyebrows when she saw that the lobby of the gym was empty. Normally she'd scold her sisters for leaving the place unattended, but today, Misty was kind of glad. She didn't much feel like dealing with them and their air headedness when she was in this kind of mood. In this instance, Misty thought it was better to be alone.

Sighing, she walked straight out the front door, squinting as soon as the sunlight hit her. The warmth of the outdoors had already started to make her feel a little better, even if she'd only been out there for a few seconds.

A sudden popping sound caught Misty's attention, and before she could fully process what was going on, she felt something step on her right foot. Looking down, Misty saw it was a cream-colored webbed foot, and she groaned.

"Psyduck, what are you doing out of your ball?"

"Psy…"

"Haven't we talked about you letting yourself out?"

Psyduck didn't respond. Instead, he shuffled closer to Misty, repeatedly stepping on her foot until he was leaning against her leg. Misty blinked, slowly inclining her head as she watched the water type.

"Did you…not want me to be alone?" Misty murmured. It took a few seconds, but Psyduck eventually nodded his head in response. "Oh, well…thank you. That's very sweet!"

"Psy-aye?" Psyduck babbled, finally gazing up at his trainer.

"Hmm?" Misty hummed. She had no idea what Psyduck was trying to tell her. Again, there was a short delay, but Psyduck suddenly jumped up, pecking at the pocket of Misty's shorts where she stored her phone. "What? Is something wrong with it?"

Misty pulled out her phone, and Psyduck jumped up again, this time grabbing the phone with his beak. Misty yelped as the water type landed on his feet, removing the phone from his mouth and holding it right in front of his face.

"Hey, give that back!" Misty demanded. "I thought you were going to keep me company, not cause trouble!"

She tried to grab the phone from Psyduck, but he turned away before she could reach it. Misty continued to scramble for the phone, which Psyduck was now pecking at the screen of. Finally, Misty managed to reach around the duck and grab the phone, pulling it out of his wings.

"Don't do that!" Misty cried, nearly breathless from the amount of work she'd had to put in.

" _Don't do what?"_

Misty jumped and whipped her head down to look at her phone. Ash was on the screen, staring back at her with a bewildered look on his face.

"N-nothing," Misty stammered, sinking into a sitting position on the ground.

" _Are you alright?"_ Ash asked.

"I guess you could call it that," Misty grumbled, glaring over at Psyduck. He didn't seem at all bothered by the look.

" _Who are you looking at like that? That's your death glare."_

Misty, for the first time that day, smirked. There was no use lying to him. "Psyduck. He's actually the one that called you."

Ash raised an eyebrow. _"Psyduck did?"_

"Yeah," Misty laughed dryly, understanding how weird it sounded. "He literally pecked my phone out of my pocket and somehow knew how to start a video call with _you_ specifically."

" _Maybe he's smarter than you give him credit for,"_ Ash snickered.

"Maybe," Misty breathed.

" _You know, you still don't sound alright to me."_

Misty grimaced. "I don't know why. I'm fine."

" _Well, I don't believe you,"_ Ash challenged. _"I might not be good at a lot of things, but I'm your boyfriend, and I'm pretty good at being able to tell when something is bothering you."_

Misty huffed, but didn't actually respond.

" _So, what's up?"_

"I don't really think I want to talk about it," Misty replied quickly but softly.

" _Why not?"_ Ash asked. _"I think you'd feel a lot better if you talked about."_

"No, I'm not like you, Ash. I tend to function better by just keeping everything inside."

" _No one functions better like that, Mist."_

"Well I must be very special then."

" _You are, but not because of that,"_ Ash chuckled. He felt proud when he managed to get another small smile out of her. _"Come on, you know you can tell me anything! Just be honest. I'm not gonna judge you or anything like that."_

Though still very uncomfortable, Misty finally managed to admit, "I've just been thinking a little too much. That's all."

" _About what?"_

"Do I really have to elaborate?"

" _Please."_

Misty rolled her eyes. "I'm just frustrated. I'm starting to feel like I'm going to be stuck in this gym forever."

" _Oh,"_ Ash breathed, finally understanding what the heart of the problem was.

"I don't normally think like that," Misty sighed, resting her head atop her fist. "I think I just started to get overwhelmed for some reason. Like it suddenly hit me that I'm still not any closer to becoming a member of the Elite Four."

Ash twisted his mouth in thought. _"But you work so hard. I don't see how you're not any closer! I mean, they're always sending league officials to watch you battle and interview you, right?"_

"Yeah, but it's not like any of that has ever led to anything," Misty whined. "It's getting annoying. I thought for sure by now I would've accomplished all my goals. But I haven't. And honestly? It sucks."

Ash smiled sympathetically. _"Listen, I got it. I mean, you and I, we're kind of in the same boat, right?"_

Misty didn't respond. Her face didn't change. She just silently and solemnly stared at Ash through her phone screen. He knew exactly why that was, and he simply carried on.

" _That's why I'm so far away from you, doing my very best to train for the Indigo League. I still want to be a Pokémon Master. And I thought I'd be there by now too. But I'm not. It's taking longer than I expected. And there are days where I get really irritated and upset, just like you. But whenever that happens, I always try and remember why I'm doing this in the first place."_

The gym leader sighed and sat up straight, lifting her head as she lowered her tightly balled fist. "Remind me…why _are_ we doing this again?"

" _Because this is what you and I love to do,"_ Ash replied, his smile widening. _"It's what we know best. I couldn't imagine doing anything else with my life other than training Pokémon and battling. And I know you feel the same way."_

Misty tilted her head and smirked. "Alright, fine. You have a point."

" _I know that sometimes it seems impossible, or like it's never going to happen, but I have faith in the both of us,"_ Ash continued. _"You're allowed to get frustrated from time-to-time; you're just not allowed to give up."_

"You know before how you said you're not good at a lot of things?" Misty cheekily asked.

" _Yeah…?"_

"Giving motivational speeches just so happens to be something you're _very_ good at," Misty concluded, her eyes twinkling.

Ash laughed, shrugging his shoulders. _"Hey, I'm just glad I could help!"_

"You definitely did," Misty confirmed, nodding her head. "Thanks for making me feel a little less lost."

Ash beamed, his own eyes shining as he stared into those of his girlfriend. _"Hey, at least we're lost together."_


	5. Third Wheel

**So, congrats to everyone who guessed that I'd be using Day 5 as my free choice...you were right! I'm just not super into the premise of the 20th movie, nor am I very into writing AU type stuff. So I knew pretty early on that this was the day I'd be going with a different theme.**

 **In its place, I elected to go with "Third Wheel." Pretty much because I fell in love with the Lana/Misty connection in the Kanto episodes and came up with an idea around it almost immediately.**

 **Please enjoy!**

* * *

 **Third Wheel**

"Ah! Misty!"

"Hey, Lana!"

The former had been waiting for the latter at the airport's baggage claim, and as soon as they saw each other, the two had wrapped each other up in a tight embrace.

Lana was absolutely ecstatic to be seeing Misty again. They had first been introduced upon the Pokémon School's massive anniversary trip to Kanto several years prior, and from the moment they'd met, Lana had been absolutely enamored by Misty. Between her physical beauty as well as her natural talent with and passion for water type Pokémon; it really wasn't any surprise Lana was so drawn to the redhead. The two hadn't seen each other in person since then, but had kept up regularly with texts and video calls.

"How was your flight?" Misty asked cordially, pulling away from the smaller blue haired girl.

"It was fine," Lana quickly replied, not overly interested in talking about her travel for too long. "How's the gym?"

"Business as usual," Misty chuckled, shrugging her shoulders. "Trainers coming by every day, my sisters getting on my nerves, all that fun stuff. But the Pokémon are all super excited to see you and your team again! They're looking forward to a few good sparring matches."

"We are too!" Lana excitedly declared. "We've been training really hard, so I can't wait to show you what we've all been working on!"

"Sounds good to me!" Misty giggled.

"Man…this bag is so heavy!"

Misty blinked, while Lana spun around to find Ash approaching them with her luggage in his hand.

"Oh, you didn't have to grab that!" Lana gasped, quickly prying the handle out of Ash's fingers. "I'm sorry."

"Don't worry, it was no big deal," Ash assured her with a smile. "What's in there anyway that's making it so heavy? I always had you pegged as a pretty light packer."

"I brought all of my fishing stuff so that Misty and I could go together," Lana explained.

Ash's eyes widened. "Your fishing stuff made your bag _that_ heavy?!"

"Lana's got all the best equipment for fishing," Misty spoke up, addressing Ash but still smiling at Lana. "It might not be light, but it's totally worth it to bring along!"

"I really want to try and catch at least one water type while I'm here," Lana continued.

"Well, that shouldn't be a problem!" Misty chirped.

"Yeah, especially if you're gonna go fishing with Misty," Ash added, causing the redhead to blush. "She's the best fisher I know! Uh…and you are too, Lana! You're both really good!"

Lana giggled. "It's fine, Ash! Besides, I think Misty is even better fisher than I am. She's always giving me really good tips whenever I ask for some help that always improve my catches!"

Incredibly enough, Misty's blush managed to strengthen. "Come on, I definitely don't think I'm better than you!"

"Well I do!" Lana warbled. "You know all this stuff that I've never even heard of before!"

"I'm sure you know things that I don't. Remember that one time you told me that thing about the bait?"

"Yeah, but that was only one time."

"Maybe, but it was really good advice! I still use that every time I go out fishing."

Ash had essentially shrunk into the background. He wasn't used to Misty and Lana getting so caught up with one another. Sure, he knew they were good friends and always seemed to admire each other. But this was on an entirely different level.

"Hey, why don't we head on over to the gym?" Ash finally spoke up, re-entering the conversation. "Pikachu's waiting there for us, I'm sure he's wondering what's taking so long!"

"Oh, right!" Misty breathed. "Plus, my sisters are getting really antsy by now. Let's go!"

Misty turned around and waved her hand, a silent request for both Ash and Lana to follow her. Ash, of course, had remembered exactly where Misty parked the car, and strutted ahead to catch up with the gym leader, able to move far more agilely now that he was free of Lana's heavy luggage.

"You and Lana really seem excited to see each other," Ash commented.

Misty smirked. Ash never was one who liked to walk in silence. Or do much else in silence, really. "Of course! It's been a while since we've actually seen each other in person. This is a pretty big deal. Besides, I think Lana is really cool. We're kind of like the same person."

"Yeah, kind of," Ash drawled, his lips bending into a smirk. "There are differences though. I can tell! After all, you are my gi-"

Misty gasped and stopped in her tracks, quickly throwing a hand over Ash's mouth. Lana halted as well, switching her bewildered gaze between Ash and Misty.

"Um…is everything okay?" Lana squeaked.

Misty blushed and laughed nervously, removing her hand from Ash's face. "Yeah, sorry! That probably looked a little strange."

"A little?" Ash muttered sarcastically, narrowing his eyes at her.

"Ash just said something a bit inappropriate, that's all," Misty sighed, her eyebrow twitching. "You know how he can get!"

Lana giggled, tilting her head to the side. "Right! Got it!"

Misty turned back around on her heel and continued marching on, trying her best to pretend like nothing had just happened. Ash, however, was not as keen to ignore it, and shot the redhead a glare as he resumed walking alongside her.

"What was _that_ about?" Ash demanded, lowering his voice so Lana (hopefully) wouldn't hear him.

"You can't just spit that word out so casually like that!" Misty hissed, further agitated that Ash hadn't chosen to move on like she had.

"Why?" Ash grumbled. "It's what you are to me."

"I know that, and I love it, but…"

"But what?" Ash prodded once Misty trailed off.

"I…maybe…might not have told Lana that we're dating?" Misty squeaked, aloofly looking around as she and Ash reached the automatic sliding doors that would lead them outside of the airport.

" _What?!_ " Ash shrieked, unable to help himself.

Misty was about to cover his mouth again, but stopped once she realized Lana was too distracted by all of the traffic outside and the noise that came with it.

"Why not?" Ash questioned once Misty didn't respond to hm.

"I don't know," Misty admitted. She meant it. "It feels weird, you know? To just announce to someone that I'm in a relationship. Besides, why pin this on me? Why haven't _you_ told Lana? She's your friend too."

"Because you talk to her way more than I do," Ash replied easily. This was also true. "I don't randomly call people up to tell them about my love life. But you and Lana text all the time, and you video call like once a week."

"I guess the topic of romance just never came up in any of our conversations," Misty mused. "We spend a lot of time talking about water Pokémon and battling."

"I've never seen this many cars in one place before."

Ash and Misty both jumped. Lana had silently come up between both of them, and was still staring out at the traffic. Once she realized both her friends had been alarmed, however, Lana smirked and playfully stuck her tongue out of the corner of her mouth.

"Right, Alola is very different than Kanto," Ash commented once he'd managed to relax himself. "Not so many cars driving around all at once!"

"It has an interesting smell," Lana added, tilting her nose up.

"Those are gasoline fumes," Misty snickered. "Come on, let's find the car before you inhale too much of those."

 **XXX**

The large glass building was a welcoming sight for Lana. She had fallen in love with the Cerulean City Gym the first time she laid eyes on it, and seeing it again was no exception.

"You should've seen this place before Misty and her sisters fixed it up," Ash chuckled as soon as he found Lana gawking at the building. "It was real-"

Misty cleared her throat, casting the raven haired teen a warning look.

"Interesting," Ash concluded, dragging out the last syllable.

"Those were different times, that kind of architecture was very 'in' back then," Misty defended, using air quotes for emphasis.

"Misty's shown me pictures," Lana informed Ash, much to his surprise. He hadn't known that. "I thought it was really cute!"

"See?" Misty boasted, flicking her closest shoulder to Ash forward. "Lana doesn't think it was ugly!"

"I didn't say it was ugly, I said it was interesting," Ash corrected.

"That's not the word you wanted to use and we all know it," Misty scoffed.

"You guys bicker a lot," Lana offhandedly noted, still looking at the gym. "That's cute too."

Both Ash and Misty's faces turned a deep shade of red. There was a long beat of relatively awkward silence before Lana giggled and tilted her head. Her two friends groaned, Misty smacking her forehead and Ash slumping his shoulders as they both turned away from her.

"You've always got to joke around, don't you, Lana?" Misty sighed.

Lana hummed in the affirmative as she nodded her head.

"Pikapi!"

The front doors of the gym slid open, and Pikachu came bounding out of the building, heading straight for the trio of humans. He eagerly climbed up his trainer and perched himself on the teen's shoulder, excitedly waving to Lana once he was settled.

"Hi, Pikachu!" Lana greeted. "It's so nice to see you!"

"Ka-chu," Pikachu agreed.

"Would you like to play with Popplio?" Lana asked, reaching for the sea lion's poke ball. "He's been in here for a while, so I think some fresh air right about now would be greatly appreciated."

"Pi!" Pikachu confirmed, excitedly shaking his tail back and forth.

"Okay!" Lana chirped. "Come on out, Popplio!"

The water type was released in a spray of white light, and as soon as he'd appeared, Pikachu had already returned to the ground in order to chase him around.

"Look at those two," Misty giggled. "They're having a blast!"

"Pokémon always seem to know how to have a good time," Ash chuckled.

Lana nodded in agreement before turning towards Misty. "I know we just got here, but would you like to go for some fishing? I know you said that some of the rarest water types come out around this time of day."

"Sure!" Misty replied without hesitation. "Ash, would you mind bringing Lana's stuff inside while we start walking?"

"Me?!" Ash cried.

"Well, yeah, I can't trust my sisters to do it," Misty reasoned with him. "Especially since I've already asked them to watch after the gym for the day. If I try and get any more favors out of them, I'll be owing them way too much, and that's never a good situation."

Ash grimaced. Unfortunately for him, he could never say no to Misty, so he knew he was going to end up bringing the suitcase inside whether he actually wanted to or not.

"Alright," Ash begrudgingly agreed.

"Thank you!" Misty trilled. "You can come meet up with us as soon as you're finished! We're just going to head towards Cerulean Cape and set ourselves up over there."

"Sounds good," Ash droned, grabbing hold of the luggage's handle. "Pikachu, why don't you go on ahead with Popplio and the girls?"

"Ka!" Pikachu squeaked, nodding his head.

As the group began walking towards their destination, Ash headed in the opposite direction, towards the gym. He rolled the heavy suitcase behind him, the weight weighing on both his arm _and_ his mind, which brought up a sudden realization. "Wait, Lana, your fishing stuff!"

He quickly looked over his shoulder, but Misty and Lana were already out of earshot. They had started to run instead of walk, and had gotten much farther away than Ash had thought.

"Guess I'll just have to bring it to her," Ash muttered to himself, looking straight ahead as he continued to walk and trudge the bag along. The minute he stepped foot in the gym, a shrill alarm went off, causing the boy to shriek and stumble backwards, tripping over the luggage and falling towards the floor with it.

"Oooh, another challenger! Sorry, but…Ash?"

The teen groaned and glanced up, grimacing out of pain; both physical and from seeing the woman hovering over him. "Hi, Daisy."

"I thought you were some eager little kid I was going to have to turn down," Daisy whined, pouting as she folded her arms across her chest.

"You sound disappointed," Ash noted, slowly sitting up as he rubbed his sore rib.

"Kind of, I haven't gotten to break too many hearts today," Daisy complained.

Ash resisted the urge to roll his eyes. Misty's sisters were all about that, whether it came to men or poor young trainers who were just looking for a gym battle. He wasn't quite sure who he felt worse for.

"I hate to ask, but what's with the alarm?" Ash asked, finally getting to his feet. "It's a little…loud."

"Oh, Tracey set it up for us!" Daisy squealed, obviously excited about the system. "It's so we don't have to stand around all day staring at the door whenever Misty isn't here. It totally senses when someone walks in and lets us know from wherever we are!"

"Is that why it sounds like a Loudred screaming?" Ash deadpanned.

"Yeah, pretty much," Daisy confirmed.

Ash breathed out quietly and grabbed hold of the suitcase's handle once again to turn it towards him. "Right. Anyway, Misty and Lana already headed out to go fishing, so I'm gonna go catch up with them. I just have to get Lana's fishing stuff out of here and-"

"Wait, you can't go yet!" Daisy cried.

"Why not?" Ash cried.

"Because Violet, Lily, and I are just finishing up revising the script for our latest water ballet and we need to run it past someone!" Daisy hastily explained. "And since you just so happened to walk through that door at just the right time…"

"No, it's not the right time," Ash calmly argued, kneeling down to unzip Lana's suitcase. "I already told you I have to meet up with Misty and Lana!"

"They can wait, they have each other," Daisy scoffed.

Ash's body froze, only his head rigidly moving towards Daisy. "What's that supposed to mean?"

Daisy smirked and flipped her golden blonde hair over her shoulder. "Come on, Ash. If she wasn't already dating you, I'd just assume she and that girl were an item!"

Ash's eyes widened, and Daisy started to giggle. "You're so much fun! But seriously, let us just run the script by you. I promise it won't take long!"

He was about to protest again, but Ash couldn't get the words out before Daisy had grabbed his arm and pulled him up, dragging him along deeper into the gym.

 **XXX**

"Not long? Yeah, right. I'm pretty sure I celebrated like five birthdays waiting for them to finish up!"

Ash was stomping along the sidewalk, a scowl on his face as he hauled (what he assumed was) all of Lana's fishing equipment over his right shoulder. Misty and Lana were sitting by the edge of the water, happily chatting, but stopped as soon as they saw Ash coming towards them.

"Where were you?!" Misty cried, tapping on her cell phone. "It's been almost 45 minutes!"

"That's it?" Ash deadpanned. "Could've sworn it was years."

"Seriously, where'd you go?" Misty asked.

"Your sister found me in the gym and made me listen to the new script they've all been working on!" Ash cried, the horror evident on his face and in his voice.

Misty suddenly seemed to understand, and pulled a more sympathetic look. "I'm so sorry."

Lana blinked, appearing confused. "Your sisters must really like to talk."

"Yeah, the sound of their own voices is like music to their ears," Misty cracked, smiling at the Alolan girl.

That one little action caused Ash to raise his eyebrows. "Daisy was right!"

"Those are three words I never thought I'd hear, especially from you," Misty snickered. "What was she right about?"

Ash handed Lana her fishing equipment before reaching down and gently pulling Misty up by her arm. Lana and Misty both looked confused, but Ash was determined.

"We'll be right back," Ash promised the blue haired girl.

"Oh, okay," Lana chirped, unaffected by the sudden move. She simply reached for one of the fishing poles that Ash had just brought with him and began to ready it. While Lana busied herself with that, Ash practically dragged Misty away a safe distance, where he was sure their conversation would be private.

"What has gotten into you?" Misty questioned, shaking Ash's hand off of her arm.

"This is going to sound kind of weird, but I think I just need to say it, because I don't like not being honest with you," Ash rambled.

"Uh, sure, just say whatever it is you need to say," Misty replied, still thrown off by Ash's unusual behavior.

"So ever since Lana got here, I've just kind of felt like the third wheel, which is _kind of_ uncomfortable but not really a big deal because I know that you and Lana are really close," Ash explained, still going a mile a minute. "But then, when I got stuck at the gym with your sisters, Daisy said something kind of weird."

"Weird?" Misty repeated, inclining her head. "Just before you said she was right."

"It was weird but also kind of right," Ash sighed.

"What did she say?" Misty questioned.

"Something like you and Lana wouldn't be missing me too much, because you guys have each other, and that if I wasn't dating you, she'd kind of just assume you and Lana were," Ash sighed.

Misty remained silent for a moment before letting out a short, sharp laugh. "Daisy is such an idiot."

Ash blinked hard. "So you don't agree with her?"

"Of course not," Misty scoffed. "I mean, it's not like I'd be _against_ it-"

"You're not helping," Ash interrupted.

"But she said it herself, I'm dating _you_ ," Misty practically growled, annoyed that Ash had cut her off. "She was just trying to freak you out, and obviously she got exactly what she was looking for. Your nerves are _shot,_ Mr. Pokémon Master."

Ash whined like a frustrated child and huffily crossed his arms. "Why do I always fall for it?"

"Because you love me so much," Misty giggled. " _And_ because Daisy is an expert when it comes to pushing people's buttons. But I am really sorry you've been feeling like a third wheel. I know Lana is your friend too! I'll try and be a little more inclusive."

"Thanks," Ash breathed, finally smiling. "Although, this whole thing would probably be way easier if we just told Lana we're dating."

"I already know."

Ash and Misty yelped. Just like before, Lana had suddenly appeared between them, a blank look on her face that very quickly melted into one of mischievousness.

"Lana, you already knew?!" Ash cried.

"Not _before_ I got here, but it didn't take long," Lana answered.

"When did you figure it out?" Misty murmured.

"At the airport," Lana chirped. "You guys aren't very subtle. Or very good at whispering."

Misty threw Ash an unimpressed look, but Ash was quick to fire one back. "She said both of us!"

"You started it," Misty challenged.

Ash was about to argue back, but he realized that Misty was right. So instead, he started to laugh nervously and rub the back of his neck.

"So…now that we got that out of the way…how about we get to fishing?"


	6. Pikachu's Role

**A little late on Day 6, but I still made it in under the wire!**

 **Today's theme is "Pikachu's Role in Ash and Misty's Relationship." I really loved this one, because I love writing Pikachu with those two! He loves Misty just as much as he loves Ash, after all ;)**

* * *

 **Pikachu's Role in Ash and Misty's Relationship**

"Pi-ka-chu! Pi-ka-chu!"

Misty poked her head into the doorway and giggled as soon as she heard Pikachu singing to himself. "That sure is a nice song, Pikachu!"

The electric mouse twitched his ears and smiled at the young woman. "Chu!"

She stepped back fully into the kitchen, a container of salt in her hands. "You're helping out with breakfast? That's so nice! You're such a big help."

"Pi-ka," Pikachu squeaked. He was in fact holding a wooden spoon in his paws, and was stirring inside the pot on the stove to the best of his ability. It was basically as big as he was, after all.

Ash and Misty were paying a visit to Delia in Pallet Town. She, of course, was more than thrilled to have her son and his girlfriend around, even if it was just for the weekend. She had been gracious enough to let Ash and Misty sleep in, but Misty never tended to sleep for too long. When she'd managed to sneak downstairs, doing her best not to disturb Ash in the process, that's when she'd found Pikachu in the kitchen, assisting with breakfast prep.

"Let me give you a hand," Misty offered, opening up the container and sprinkling some salt into the boiling water, full of diced potatoes.

"Pikapi?" Pikachu asked, tilting his head.

Misty scoffed. "He's _still_ asleep. The only way I know he's even still alive is because he's snoring like heavy machinery."

Pikachu snickered at the comparison.

Misty smiled at the mouse's reaction, but the continued in a longing fashion. "I wish he'd wake up a little earlier every once in a while. I know he's an awful cook, but it _would_ be nice for him to help out just a little bit. I bet his mom would really appreciate it. I know I would."

The electric type sat silently before suddenly leaping off the counter. Misty blinked and looked over her shoulder just in time to watch Pikachu scurry straight out of the kitchen.

"Hmm…"

"Oh, where did Pikachu go?"

Misty glanced up, locking eyes with Delia. The older woman, who had just come back with some fresh herbs from her garden, looked rather bewildered herself.

"I'm not sure," Misty admitted. "He just jumped and ran off."

"Such a cutie," Delia giggled, placing the gathered herbs on the counter. "I'm sure he'll be back in no time!"

Pikachu, meanwhile, was on a mission. He was hurriedly making his way up the stairs to the second floor, right into Ash's bedroom. Just as Misty had said, he was still fast asleep in the top bunk, practically shaking the room as he snored. Rolling his beady black eyes, Pikachu ascended the steps that led to the higher bed, and settled himself on the mattress beside Ash's head. Once Ash snored again, it seemed to set something off for the small yellow mouse. With a low growl, Pikachu quickly unleashed a powerful thunderbolt, shocking Ash and rudely waking him up.

The raven haired trainer let out a scream, both of his eyes twitching once the attack stopped and the electricity continued flowing through his body. Slowly turning his head, Ash glowered at his partner, who appeared unaffected.

"Pikachu, what was that for?" Ash demanded. "I was allowed to sleep in today!"

"Pikachupi pi ka," Pikachu replied.

"Misty…?" Ash muttered.

Pikachu sighed and bit Ash's sleeve, tugging at it with his teeth. Ash just watched Pikachu try and drag him for a few seconds before groaning and sitting up.

"Okay, look, you did it," Ash tiredly sighed. "I'm up, I'm up."

"Pi," Pikachu squeaked, pointing towards the door with his tail.

"What, I have to go all the way downstairs?" Ash whined.

Pikachu nodded his head. Ash started to grumble again, and in return, Pikachu's cheeks began sparking. Ash let out a strangled cry and jumped over the edge of the bed, landing perfectly on his feet like a Meowth.

"Don't shock me again!" Ash pleaded. "I'm going!"

Pikachu took a moment to bask in his own glory before flying off the bed and following after his trainer. They both entered the kitchen, Misty and Delia's backs facing the two as they continued to work on breakfast.

"Good morning!" Ash greeted.

Both women looked over their shoulders and smiled at the young man.

"Well, look who's up!" Delia crowed. "I'm surprised you didn't sleep in later."

" _Someone_ didn't give me a choice," Ash sighed, shooting Pikachu an accusatory look. The electric type just smirked and scratched behind his ear with a hind leg.

Misty caught the look, and her eyes widened out of realization. _That's_ where Pikachu had gone! To wake Ash up…just for her! Giggling, she hurried towards the two, a massive smile on her face. Ash was fully expecting her to come towards him, so he returned the smile and held his arms out for her. Instead, however, she quickly knelt down to gather Pikachu in her arms, rubbing her nose against the mouse's.

"You're the sweetest, Pikachu!" Misty crooned while the electric type mumbled happily.

"What?!" Ash cried, lowering his arms. "I thought you were excited to see me!"

"I am," Misty laughed. "But the only reason I'm seeing you is because Pikachu got you down here!"

Ash raised an eyebrow. "Did you tell him to shock me?"

"No, I didn't tell him to do anything," Misty replied. "Whatever he did was all his idea!"

"Chu!" Pikachu confirmed.

Ash pouted. Noticing his trainer's grimace, Pikachu effortlessly jumped out of Misty's grasp, nudging against her ankle to try and move her towards Ash. The gym leader glanced down and smirked.

"You sure are in top form this morning!" She complimented the mouse. Inching towards Ash, Misty wrapped her arms around him and pressed a delicate kiss against his cheek. "Morning."

Ash blushed. He wasn't used to showing affection around his mother. Fortunately, her back was still turned to them, and she hadn't seen the kiss. Once he was sure he didn't have an audience, Ash smiled and craned his neck to return the favor against Misty's forehead.

"Aw, that's so sweet!"

Ash shot back up, while Misty giggled. _Now_ Delia was peering over her shoulder, and smirking at her flustered son.

"Mom…" Ash whined.

"Oh, Ash, there's no need to be embarrassed," Delia lightly scolded, waving the knife in her hands around. "I think it's cute!"

"Okay, just quit throwing that knife around," Ash laughed nervously, nodding towards the sharp utensil.

Delia looked at her hand and realized she was, in fact, haphazardly handling a knife. "Oops! I forgot I was holding this!"

"Right…" Ash drawled, still chuckling behind it.

Ears twitching, Pikachu inched closer to his trainer and tugged at the young man's pants with his small paws. Ash looked down at the electric type, raising an eyebrow.

"What's up?" Ash asked.

"Pi-ka!" Pikachu cried, releasing one paw from Ash's pants in order to point towards the back door.

"You wanna go outside?" Ash asked.

Pikachu nodded his head. Ash moved towards the door and opened it up, watching as Pikachu scurried outside.

"He's got so much energy," Misty marveled. "Did you feed him too many sweets before bed last night?"

"No!" Ash cried. "I have no idea what's gotten into him."

"Ash, would you be a dear and set the table for me?" Delia called, still busy at the counter.

"Sure," Ash confirmed, heading over to the cabinets.

"It's not like it's a bad thing," Misty resumed the conversation, holding her hands out to accept the plates that Ash had just removed from the cabinet. "He's being very sweet! Not like he usually isn't. Pikachu is like the perfect Pokémon."

"Hey, you don't have to tell me that!" Ash laughed, closing the cabinet door and pulling out the bottom drawer to retrieve utensils. "I already know how great my buddy is."

A scratching sound brought everyone's attention back to the door. Pikachu had reappeared, and was making all that noise on the glass. Ash smirked and went in that direction, opening up the door and granting Pikachu re-entry into the kitchen. He stopped, however, when he realized there were a bunch of flowers in the mouse's other paw.

"What's that?" Ash breathed, kneeling down to examine the plants. Pikachu thrust them against his trainer, his black eyes set wide and sparkling. "Oh…I get it!"

Ash accepted the flowers from his partner and stood back up, holding them out towards a surprised Misty. Her eyes trailed down, watching as dirt fell from the bottom of the stems and onto the kitchen floor. Despite that, she found the gesture to be very sweet, and happily took the bouquet from her boyfriend.

"Thank you, Ash," Misty giggled, looking around him and at the little electric type. "Pikachu."

"Pi!" Pikachu chirped, twitching his ears.

Misty smirked and went back to the cabinets to fetch a vase to put the flowers in. "I sure am lucky to have such special guys in my life!"

Ash playfully rolled his eyes before turning to look at a clearly pleased Pikachu. "Yeah, we all make a pretty good team, huh?"


	7. Midnight Conversations

**A day late, but I was not about to not share the final day with you guys! Maybe I just wanted to extend the week is all ;)**

 **This is the shortest story in the collection, but I think it's one of the most powerful and really stands on its own. I hope you all enjoy the final story of this year's collection!**

* * *

 **Midnight Conversations**

The pitch black sky was dotted by bright, twinkling stars, the still night air peppered by the chirps of nocturnal Pokémon. It was just past midnight, and everyone, people and Pokémon, had settled in for the night.

Well, there _were_ two exceptions.

Inside of a tent in Viridian Forest, Ash Ketchum and Misty Waterflower lay together, all snuggled up as they stared at the sky through a clear plastic window above their heads.

"This is really a brilliant invention," Misty murmured, nodding towards the window. "Finally I can look at the stars without having to worry about a bug ending up in my hair or my sleeping bag."

"Yeah, this would've been nice when we were kids," Ash chuckled.

"Way less freaking out on my part," Misty breathed amusedly.

"Hey, you said it, not me," Ash snickered.

Misty smirked and turned her head deeper into Ash's chest. Physically, everything about him had changed with age. He was taller, broader, stronger. But his personality, thankfully, was still very much the same. Ash was still as goofy, loving, and kind as he'd been the day Misty had met him. Of course, this meant he was still a bit dense, and he could still get a little snarky from time-to-time, but Misty wasn't sure she'd quite like him any other way.

He really was _her_ Ash.

"Do you ever think about how crazy it is, how many places we've been together? How far we've traveled?"

Misty blinked and gazed up at Ash's face. "Well, you've been to way more places than I have."

"I guess, but we've still been all over the place," Ash reasoned with her. "Kanto, the Orange Islands, Johto…you visited me in Hoenn. And you know that one day I'll take you to all those places you've never been."

"Hmm, that sounds nice," Misty breathed, temporarily closing her eyes. "I still wish I had been there the first time, though."

"I know you do," Ash murmured gently. "But it was important for you to be at the gym. Look at what an amazing gym leader you've become thanks to all that training!"

"I guess," Misty grumbled. "But being with you is better than being a good gym leader."

"Except you're not a _good_ gym leader, you're a _great_ gym leader," Ash corrected.

Misty rolled her eyes, but her lips were bent into a smile. "Sure. Whatever you say."

Ash chuckled under his breath before falling silent once again. After a few minutes, however, he spoke again. "I thought about you all the time on those journeys."

Misty raised an eyebrow. "More than Pokémon? Or food?"

"Um…"

"I'm just kidding," Misty scoffed. "I'm flattered you thought of me at all. That's very sweet."

"Of course I did," Ash replied. "You mean a whole lot to me, Mist. I don't know what I'd do without you."

In the darkness, unbeknownst to Ash, Misty's face had turned bright red. She wasn't necessarily embarrassed by the admission; if anything, she was very touched by it. She was still glad, however, that Ash couldn't see her face.

"You don't know happy it makes me to hear you say those words," Misty practically whispered, slowly shaking her head.

Ash gently laced her hair through his fingers, craning his head down to kiss her temple. "It makes me just as happy to say them."

Misty sighed contently and lifted her left arm, outstretching her hand in front of the tent's rooftop window. The stars in the sky provided only the palest of lighting, but it was just enough to make the beautiful diamond ring on her index finger twinkle; brighter than any of the stars that hung high above her and her future husband.

* * *

 **THANK YOU to everyone who read, reviewed, shared this collection. It means so much to me and really encourages me as a writer. Pokeshipping week is easily one of my favorite weeks of the whole year, because not only do I love sharing my work with everyone, but I love seeing everyone else's work as well. This is such a fantastic community, and I feel honored to be part of it.**

 **See you all again for another collection next year!**


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